I made jacketed bullets.

[Michael Kawalek]

I've been casting my own bullet for years now, but have always been interested in making my own jacketed bullets. The method is called swaging, and I've finally gotten around to doing it myself. I've started at two extremes. the .22 and the .44. I wanted to try using spent cartidge cases for jackets and that's working very well. Here's a pic of my .22 bullet making process.

You take a spent .22 shell, (first from the left) which you draw into a jacket (second from left), add a length of lead wire (third), then swage into a hollowpoint bullet(fourth). The right hand bullet is a store-bought Sierra softpoint.

I did the same thing to make a .44 MAG bullet.

I took a 40S&W case (first on left) and added a 40 caliber cast lead bullet as the core (not shown) The swaged bullet is second from the left. The third shows the depth of the hollow point, and the right hand bullet is a store-bought Sierra 240 grain hollowpoint.

The .22 bullet is .224" in diameter and weighs 55 grains. The .44MAG bullet is .429" in diameter and weighs 245 grains. I'll add a crimping grove to the bullets, then I'll start working up some test loads. After that, I'll be conducting real-world testing during deer season.

[tallpaul]

I had seen the .22 set up for years... I NEVER saw using a centerfire case for a jacket before. Does the primer stay in or is the flashhole left open? I will be curious on how it works out.

What equipment do you use? Corbin? What forums are ya learning on?

The .22's work well for varmit but do tend to expand quick from what I have seen.

[Ed Norman]

Years ago I read about an old African guide who shot a 475 #2 Nitro Express. He made bullets from 30-06 brass, and once in a while he was known to fire a loaded 30-06 cartridge as a bullet, just for fun.

Do you anneal your cases?

I suppose you could make 300 gr carbine bullets using 10mm Auto brass.

[Michael Kawalek]

Hi Paul & ED
I first learned about swaging from Dean Grennell in his books "ABC's of Reloading. He used both Corbin, and CH dies. I used CH dies on a regular RCBS Rockchucker press. Jackets are expensive, so much so that unless you get jacket material for free, it's cheaper to buy store-bought.

I came up with the idea of the 40S&W jacket myself. I am surprised at how easy it turned out to be. First I annealed cases on the stove till they were red-hot. Then I cast some 40 caliber TC bullets to use as cores. I used soft lead instead of wheelweights. I just stick the 40cal core in the mouth of belled cases, lube it with lanolin, then run it through the swaging die. The primer's still in place, and no lead leaks out the bottum. Final weight is 245 grains; just the right range for a 44MAG. Once the weather warms up, I'll be out at the range to test actual "in flight" performance. After that comes deer season testing! Another method I'm testing is just dipping the case into molten lead and completely filling it. The bullets made that way come out weighing 290 grains. That might turn out to be a good BIG game bullet.

The .22 bullets were make with SportFlite dies. They also work in a regular rockchucker press. I will be using them for ground squirrel control in my .223, so I want explosive! My next project will be making jacketed .357 bullets, out of 32ACP or 380AUTO cases. The head of a 380AUTO is .374", so I might try making a draw die to reduce the diameter down to .35ish. Just trying to stay busy!
Michael

[tallpaul]

Micheal- do you think you will gain using the .44 swaged jacketed and the 357 over a plain ol lead or lead gas checked bullet? The cast bullet has a long history of being effective with a lot less work and expense.

My cast loads work pretty well in pistol rounds- especially in straight walled ones. Quite a few handgun huntin experts swear by em. - well the right ones anyhow...

[Michael Kawalek]

Hi Paul
I have both a 44 revolver and a 44 rifle. I cast bullets, and I shoot a lot of cast loads. The jacketed bullets however are destined to become high performance loads for the rifle. Intuitively, you should guess that if cast bullets were best for every single shooting situation, then jacketed bullets wouldn't even exist. This is a self-sufficient homesteading forum after all. What better than to be self-sufficient even for my own bullets. If it turns out that these bullets are over-kill for a 44MAG rifle, I guess I'll just have to go buy something bigger to shoot them in!
Michael

[elkhound]

Originally Posted by Michael Kawalek

This is a self-sufficient homesteading forum after all. What better than to be self-sufficient even for my own bullets.

What a great self -sufficient post.hats off to you.i am looking at getting a reloader...this would be a great addition to it.i could only hope to do my own bullets....but...my 45-70 could use some nice bullets and a "hot load" to put some smack down on some game.

[Michael Kawalek]

Hi Elkhound
I would certainly encourage you to reload. If you cast your bullets too, your costs are just primers and powder. If you pick up other people's brass at the range, you don't even have to pay for that. I can think of no other rifle that is enhanced as much as a 45-70 with reloads. The manufacturers are scared to death of loading high intensity 45-70 loads because they have to potential of being shot in something more than 130 years old. You can really soup up your loads if you're loading for a modern made Marlin or Winchester.
Here's a pic of my reloading setup.

Also, no other rifle shoots cast bullets as effectively as a 45-70. Get some recycled wheelweights from your local tire store, add a little tin solder, and you'll be able to make bullets that can flatten a grizzly! See that 5 gallon bucket in the lower center of the pic. Those are one of several buckets full of lead weighs tire people just give me for free. I wish I had enough time to turn all my lead into bullets.

I'd start by reading a book like Dean Grennell's "ABC's of Reloading", by DBI books. Excellent reference that talks about all aspects of reloading, including the type of bullet swaging projects like the one's I'm talking about above...
Michael

[elkhound]

you have anice set-up to do your reloading and bullet making.i am looking at all aspects of it.talked with a guy i know about getting some whell weights and such.been looking at reloaders,componets and bullet molds.just bounceing around ideas and dreaming a bit before i actually act and invest money.i know the 45-70 lacks alot in factory loads.i ahve killed bear and deer with it..BUT..i knew it could do so much more.i seen some 'hot' loads that smoke out at about 8000 ft pounds at the muzzle.that is about the same as 458 win mag.i would not hesitate to shoot a elephant or cape buffalo with the 45-70 and a solid bullet.i think i know what my 'federal refund' will be spent on....lol

[tallpaul]

There are plenty of rifles that can and do shoot cast well. I know quite a few deer are harvested by cast lead out of the ole 30-30

check out http://castboolits.gunloads.com/index.php?

and graybeards.com has a cast bullet forum- actually there are quite a few sources out there.

And there are high performance loads from the factory for the 45/70
garret and others make em.

If you can get wheel weights for free I would be getting all I could for free... its worth more and guys are scrapping it.

I cast for .357 .44.45.and .458 and want to add .30 cal and assorted other molds in the range I use now.

BTW nice set up Micheal... where is the progressive press

[Michael Kawalek]

Hi EH
Well, you can make hot 45-70 loads, but not 8000ftlbs! Not even half that. A HOT handload in a Marlin produces up to 3500ftlbs, but that's still a lot. I'm sure that power level is enough for most African game, let alone North American. You might want to check out your local Craigslist, PennySaver, or whatever and see if anyone is selling reloading/casting equipment. I bought my entire casting outfit used from a guy for 80$. That included a Lyman furnace, lubesizer, molds, and accessaries. Shop around. I bought a reloading scale at a yard sale for 5$. I bought my shotshell reloading press at the flea market for 20$, and at least 4-5 reloading manuals for 1$ each! One route you might take is buying an inexpensive "kit" to get started. Check out midway at...
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpag...eitemid=423081
You might buy Lee's inexpensive (well, cheap) kit, bullets, powder, and primers and load up some of your empty cases. Probably on your first try you'll be able to make ammunition cheaper, more powerful, and more accurate than store-bought. If the reloading bug takes hold of you, you can branch out into more involved reloading such as casting, and eventually swaging. Get some books first and start reading. Then make an informed choice.

TP
I've never used a progressive press. All the thousands and thousands of reloads on my bench were all prepared on a single-stage RCBS press. All my thousands of cast bullets were all made in little two-cavity molds. I've alway's been a penny pincher, so I don't rush out to be first in line for the newest and greatest.
Michael
(Heavily Armed Luddite)

[elkhound]

michael and TP.....i jsut looked up a hot load for the 458 win/458 lott....looks like 6000 ft # is about tops for them.also seen a load of about 4150 for the 45-70...there was a special series in a reloader mag about a guy taking his marlin and pet loads ot africa.i have the mag in my stash i will have to see what his loads were.but anyhow.....i really am interested in the self sufficient aspects fo reloading and bullet making.i like the 30-30 rifle also...35 rem..300 savage......lol...as you can see i have a bad habit......lol.....i have a friend that loads and can keep me straight starting out.again good post....thumbs up to all that make as much as they can for their own use !!!!!!!!!!!

[shiningpath]

Impressive!!!

I've been making my own target/match rifle ammo for years. Always intrigued by the guys who took bullet making a step further with swaged jackets. What I'd love to hear about is their performance. Say, compare the std deviation between factory jacketed vs home-made over a 100 rounds or so.

I don't have the setup to even come close with a pistol, and all I have is a good rest for the rifle. It would be pretty neat to put them through a test barrel arrangement on an index table or something to get really precise with the group.

I read an article years ago about a guy that made match .22 bullets in his garage (for sale) but he used copper tubing. Because of the process involved, they were expensive and difficult to get in enough quantity for match purposes so I never tried them.

Very cool . . .

EH . . . an single stage press will suffice. The real advantage to a multi-stage is the ability to make thousands of rounds for competition purposes. It would take you forever to do it with a single-stage. If you're really interested in precision, you'll need a lot of other things first, not the least of which is a properly machined/tuned/fitted firearm. If it's pistol ammo however, I suppose there is a time savings when you're making one or two hundred rounds at a time. The press 1-stage itself is cheap enough that you won't really have lost anything if you get into the hobby and wind up getting a multi-stage progressive anyway. You can also use your single stage for some firearm you don't shoot a lot, so you don't have to change your setup on the production press.